At least 15 people were killed and more than 150 injured when a tornado struck the eastern Indian state of Orissa Tuesday night, said police on Wednesday.

The tornado left trails of devastation in the Kendrapara district of Orissa, where 11 villages were severely hit by the furious storm which pulled down more than 300 houses, toppled electric poles and uprooted trees, said police.

The injured included elderly and children and at least 25 of them were in serious conditions and being treated in hospital, said police.

The government has sent aid to the families struck by the disaster.

(Xinhua News Agency April 1, 2009)